Introduction
There have been various 'buzz words' and 'fads' during the last few years, but the only one to actually catch on and get to the point where it is a way of life for hundreds of thousands of people is, of course, the Internet.

The main beauty about the Internet is its accessibility - all you need is a computer with a modem. Perhaps not even that now with Digital TV and games consoles offering Internet access and even WAP enabled mobile phones. There is still a long way to go for these newer technologies so until then the main access for everybody is through their PC and modem.

With technologies like ADSL on the horizon for PC users, offering increased speeds and permanent connections, a lot of ISPs (Internet Service Providers) are offering deals for home users where they get access to a freephone number so the calls are free. I mean who cares whether it takes a day and a half to download a 400Mg file if it's FREE! The only thing you have to think about (apart from upsetting everyone else in the household if you've only got one phone line) is the chances are you could turn that day and a half download into under a day with the right modem. That's right, it's finally time to bin that 14,400bps that's served faithfully for the past five years and check out the latest offerings, forever in the quest for that faster download speed.

All the modems here are based on V90 technology, which means a theoretical maximum connection speed of 56,000 bps. The key word here is 'theoretical' - it can only be achieved under ideal conditions -i.e. something you're never going to see on you home phone line. The average connection speed you're likely to get is around 46,000 bps although dependant on your phone line it could be as low as 38,000 or as high as 53,000. Even if you get poor connection speeds, if your upgrading from a 14,400 modem then you'll see a speed increase of around three times and an increase of about one and a half times from a 28,000 modem. In addition to the faster downloads, you're likely to get more reliable connections, better software and extended features such as fax and voice facilities with an new modem. It's just a case of finding one that meets your budget and requirements.

How we carried out our tests